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Gluten-Free Glutton: Here's wishing for gluten-free-only concession stand or carts at EverBank Field

Since I was put on a strict gluten-free diet three years ago, I’ve spent a lot of that time doing my part to educate the public about it.

To repeat: The gluten-free diet is a medical necessity for people with celiac disease or some other type of gluten intolerance. It is not a fad diet and has no proven health benefits for people who don’t have those conditions. But for celiacs, a little gluten can be quite dangerous.

You may be tired of reading this from me but believe me, I can’t say it enough. Clearly, the message is not reaching everyone.

I found this out the hard way recently when I got sick at a Jacksonville Jaguars game. I was served a hot dog on a bun that was not gluten-free by concession workers who didn’t seem to have an idea what “gluten-free” means.

Now before I go any further, I’ve told this story a number of times and everyone comes back with the same joke. So to answer your question, no, I was not sickened by the Jaguars performance on the field. I’m 99 percent certain it was gluten. And please understand that the Jaguars organization is taking what happened seriously.

The game where I got sick was in October, when the Jaguars were still winless. Even though the team is much more fun to watch these days, I truly can’t stomach the thought of going back to another game right now after my bad experience.

The Jaguars offer hot dogs on gluten-free buns at several general concession stands around EverBank Field. I cheerfully wrote about that before the season started, but now I’m not so sure that having several locations is a good thing.

The problem is the concession staff. The stands are staffed mainly by nonprofit groups and there is a large amount of turnover from game to game. At restaurants with gluten-free menus, the serving staff is usually trained to understand what diners need when they ask for gluten-free options. However, with the large amount of turnover at EverBank Field, the concession staff obviously doesn’t get much of an opportunity for training.

I visited three different stands at EverBank Field at a game in October and found much confusion among the staff when I ordered a hot dog on a gluten-free bun. When I finally received the hot dog at the first stand, I asked again, “is this a gluten-free bun?” I was told yes.

The hot dog was so good I decided to get another one. In retrospect, I should have been more suspicious because the bun was too good.

I visited a second stand and after, again, much confusion, I was told they were out of gluten-free buns. OK, I’ll go to another stand.

This is where I realized I was in trouble. Again, my request sparked a conversation among several workers who weren’t sure what to do, and then I was told “all our buns are gluten-free.”

Obviously, that’s ridiculous.

I now had no confidence in them at all and, as I continued to argue with the staff, my friend, who observed the whole thing, said she would take the hot dog they were trying to serve me. She said the staff was clearly trying to just get rid of me.

I went back to the original stand to try again to order a gluten-free hot dog and, again, after much discussion, was served a hot dog on a bun that was very different than the first one I received. This was the usual awful gluten-free bun I’m used to. Now I knew that my first hot dog came on a regular bun.

Sure enough, in the second half, I started feeling sick.

I don’t get severe symptoms the way some other celiacs do when they accidentally ingest gluten. But any food server should learn this: Serving gluten to a customer who requests a gluten-free meal can seriously endanger someone’s health.

I’ve talked to the Jaguars about my experience and they are taking it seriously.

“Clearly this was a failure,” said Hussain Naqi, the Jaguars’ senior vice president for fan engagement. “We certainly will get better on that.”

Businesses do get better with their gluten-free offerings when they are educated. Just look at California Pizza Kitchen.

The restaurant chain began offering pizzas on gluten-free crusts in 2011 and almost immediately, the gluten-free blogosphere was filled with stories of people getting sick after eating those pizzas.

As it turned out, California Pizza Kitchen introduced the pizzas with no staff training to ensure that the gluten-free pizzas were not contaminated with crumbs and dust from regular pizzas prepared in the same kitchen. The company pulled the pizzas off the menu a couple of months later.

That was disappointing to me, because the pizzas were delicious. As I said, I don’t get the severe symptoms that other celiacs get when they encounter the tiniest bit of gluten, so I was able to eat the pies with no problems.

Well, it took more than two years, but California Pizza Kitchen finally reintroduced its gluten-free pizzas in October with a full program in place to prevent cross-contamination. The program has been approved by the Gluten Intolerance Group, which certifies restaurants that provide the proper procedures.

“I know our company made a concerted effort to do it,” said George Weigel, general manager of California Pizza Kitchen’s Jacksonville restaurant at the St. Johns Town Center.

Weigel took me into the kitchen to show me the gluten-free procedures, and I was impressed. The kitchen has a separate preparation area for the gluten-free pizzas and keeps all the sauces and toppings for the gluten-free pies in a separate cabinet.

The gluten-free crusts are kept in a separate area with their own baking tins. The restaurant also has separate pizza cutters and plates for the gluten-free pies.

California Pizza Kitchen’s menu has four gluten-free pizza options: barbeque chicken, pepperoni, margherita and mushroom pepperoni sausage. Weigel said you can also order a plain cheese gluten-free pizza.

You can actually order a gluten-free crust for any pizza on the menu, but “these are the only five we can guarantee are GIG certified,” he said.

As I’ve said before, it’s difficult for a pizza restaurant to prevent cross-contamination because of the dust from pizza dough flying around. I’ve visited several pizza restaurants in the Jacksonville area and I have to say California Pizza Kitchen is doing it as well as anyone.

Just like California Pizza Kitchen learned from its mistakes, I’m hoping the Jaguars can as well. I’m very confident that after I told them about my appalling experience, they will take the necessary steps.

I know it’s too late for this season, but one suggestion I have is that instead of offering gluten-free options around the stadium, maybe they should offer them in only one spot where everything is gluten free.

This is actually becoming quite common. I went to a New York Giants game at MetLife Stadium last month and found there was a solitary “Gluten-Free Grill” cart where fans could get hot dogs and burgers on gluten-free buns.

The Tampa Bay Rays have been doing something similar at Tropicana Field, with a single gluten-free-only concession stand. Even the Jacksonville Suns have been doing that, providing gluten-free hot dogs in one location in the Sundowner Lounge in the Baseball Grounds of Jacksonville.

It’s not the most convenient solution, because the single gluten-free stand may be a long way from your seat. But it’s reassuring to know that when you visit these stands, everything you get will be gluten-free.

I’m hoping the Jaguars will go this way, too, and give me the confidence to return to EverBank Field.

Mark Basch’s column appears the second Thursday of the month. He also writes a blog about gluten-free eating in Jacksonville at jaxglutenfreeglutton.blogspot.com/. You can reach him at basch.mark@gmail.com.